122 stories by "Lauren Whalen"
Playwright Anna Ziegler began Boy as a direct homage to David Reimer, who in1967 at 18-month-old, was left with damaged genitals due to a circumcision accident. Desperate, his parents turned…
What does loyalty mean? How far does it go? And what if your loyalty (or lack of) affects your livelihood and the ability to support your family? Award-winning playwright Lee Blessing tackle…
Playwright and poet Aziza Barnes wrote BLKS as a self-portrait of herself and her best friends in her early 20s. Full of laugh-out-loud moments as well as dark humor and quiet poignancy, BLK…
*Potted* means condensed. *Potter,* at least in this case, means Harry Potter, a child wizard and the center of seven books that propelled J.K. Rowling from broke schoolteacher to wealthy me…
Chicago Shakespeare Theater's Red Velvet chronicles Ira Aldridge's groundbreaking but ill-timed two-day run as Othello at Covent Garden in 1833, the first African-American actor to star on a…
When Tracy Letts' newest play, The Minutes, is good, it's very, very good, and that's the case for the play's first 90-95 minutes. As a small-town transplant myself, I can verify the hilario…
Now in its second glorious year, Joffrey Ballet's updated The Nutcracker, set during the construction of Chicago's 1893 Worlds Fair in an immigrant family's shack and their daughter's fantas…
One of off-Broadway's longest-running shows, the boy band parody Altar Boyz is a real-time concert of a Christian boy band who love singing and dancing - but love Jesus even more. Theo Ubiqu…
Based on the 1967 children's TV special, this fun Rudolph chronicles the adventures of a North Pole reindeer (Graham Thomas Heacock) who just doesn't fit in with his peers - he just can't co…
In Invictus Theatre Company's inaugural production of Othello, Iago is played as a woman. Her strong performance and a largely solid ensemble are not enough, however, to save a weak lead and…
Victory Gardens' latest play, Fade, a co-production with Teatro Vista, features the relationship of two very different Latinx individuals who happen to work in the same building. Fade is fun…
Running 90 minutes with no intermission, Tick, Tick...BOOM! is poignant but inconsistent, with a score that's lovely and touching but also frustrating and dreary. The Cuckoo's Theater Projec…
Everyone loves a good, tragic love story, and Lyric Opera's The Pearl Fishers doesn't disappoint. Its two-and-a-half-hour running time is shorter than that of the average opera, making it a …
Yasmina's Necklace is very Muslim in its theme, but also very American " unique yet universal. Thoughtfully directed by Ann Filmer, and featuring a gifted ensemble, the Chicago premiere of M…
Breath, Boom is never an easy watch, challenging the audience to check its collective privilege and watch a survivor endure her darkest years with only small flashes of optimism. Beautifully…
Firebrand Theatre's Lizzie is an all-female rock musical about the the true story of Lizzie Borden, whose alleged axe murder of her father and stepmother in 1892 led to a media frenzy, a nur…
With a running time of just over 2 hours, School of Rock is just as winning as the original film. Taking an underdog story and blending it with cute kids and a rousing score, the musical mak…
With Akeelah and the Bee, Adventure Stage Chicago has adapted the 2006 screenplay, relocating the story to the South Side of Chicago, adding Spanish supertitles to make the show more accessi…
Besides its humor, Bobby Pin Girls tackles issues such as addiction, self-harm and toxic masculinity without being manipulative or heavy-handed, which is a skill on its own. Nothing Without …
The Joffrey Ballet's premiere of a newly-staged Giselle doesn't disappoint, wringing out every possible drop of excitement, in a production that's equal parts breathtaking and horrifying, ha…
Forbidden love, war and deception are all present in the story of playwright John Millington Synge's Deiredre of the Sorrows (which hasn't been professionally produced in Chicago in a centur…
Known for their innovative, quality work, Kokandy Productions knocks Bonnie & Clyde out of the park, as director Spencer Neiman and team overcome some of the source material's flaws wit…
The CiviliTy of Albert Cashier has the bones of a solid production: a sad but compelling true story, dynamic lead performers and a beautiful score. However, it still feels like a work-in-pro…
Rough House Theater Company specializes in physical theater and puppetry, and their world premiere of Cicada Summer seamlessly fuses both with a sweet coming-of-age tale involving thirteen-y…
Route 66 Theatre's A Funny Thing Happened... has an excellent cast that almost (but not quite) make up for the script's flaws. One wishes playwright Halley Feiffer had a better critique part…
